Louisville ousts North Carolina in the ACC women’s semifinals

DULUTH, GA — No. 2 seed Louisville soundly beat No. 3 North Carolina, 65-57, in the ACC semifinals on Saturday.

With 2:17 remaining in regulation, the Louisville Cardinals built a 10-point lead and closed the door on North Carolina to punch its ticket to the ACC Tournament championship.

After the final buzzer, ACC Sixth Player of the Year Imari Berry and Laura Ziegler chest bumped. ‘Yeahhhhh!’ Ziegler said as Berry smiled. The Cardinals will play defending ACC Tournament champion and No. 1 seed Duke on Sunday (1 p.m ET, ESPN).

Berry was the best player on the floor with a game-high 22 points off the bench. Ziegler added 12 points, including a clutch 3-pointer in the third quarter. Elif Istanbulluoglu had 11 points to help Louisville stay out in front. As a team, the Cardinals held North Carolina to 35% shooting from the field and 25% from deep. Louisville also forced 15 turnovers.

North Carolina had four players in double figures, but only had 10 bench points to Louisville’s 27. Additionally, the Tar Heels didn’t move the ball well against Louisville’s defense. They had just seven assists through four quarters. Elina Aarnisalo led North Carolina with 17 points and five assists, four rebounds and a steal.

Louisville’s starting forward briefly exits with fourth quarter injury

At the 6:47 mark of the fourth quarter, starter Elif Istanbulluoglu fell to the floor after getting tangled up on a play. She immediately grabbed her left ankle as she writhed in pain. Louisville head coach Jeff Walz walked out to the floor to check on her before a trainer came out.

Teammate Reyna Scott untied Istanbulluoglu’s shoe, trying to help as the Louisville forward remained on the floor. Istanbulluoglu was eventually helped to her feet, but she needed help getting to the bench before going back to the locker room. The Louisville forward returned to the bench at the 5:19 mark, and a trainer wrapped her foot before she put her shoe back on. Istanbulluoglu tested out her foot on the sidelines and rejoined a team huddle at the 4:43 mark.

Third quarter: Louisville 45, North Carolina 40

After winning the second quarter, it was Louisville in the tightly contested third quarter that gave it some breathing room. The Cardinals lead by five after three, but it feels gigantic in a game that’s going back-and-forth. Laura Ziegler’s 3-pointer with 25 seconds remaining in the quarter ignited the Gas South Arena as the Cardinals pushed into the fourth quarter.

Louisville has held North Carolina to 35% shooting for the entire matchup and forced six third-quarter turnovers. Imari Berry leads all scorers with 16 points.

Halftime: Louisville 28, North Carolina 27

North Carolina won the second quarter 17-12, paced by Mackenly Randolph, who had seven points in the period. The push from the Tar Heels pulled them within one of Louisville. The Cardinals are shooting 42% with eight turnovers. North Carolina is shooting 33% with six turnovers, with no players in double figures yet. Louisville’s Imari Berry leads all scorers with 11 points.

North Carolina fighting back from the 3-point line

The Tar Heels have withstood an early push from the Cardinals. North Carolina began a mid-second quarter push with a lovely cross-court pass in transition to Nyla Brooks for three. The Tar Heels now have four triples on the day.

First quarter: Louisville, 16, North Carolina 10

Louisville’s Imari Berry is the early winner of the first quarter. The ACC Sixth Player of the Year is 3-for-3 from deep, scoring nine points to help push the Cardinals out in front 16-10. For North Carolina, no player has scored more than five points, and the team is shooting 31% from the field.

Louisville and North Carolina going basket-for-basket early

At the 3:24 mark of the first quarter, it’s been a tug-of-war-between Louisville and North Carolina. The score is tied, 10-10, despite the Cardinals shooting 57% and the Tar Heel shooting 36% from the floor.

Louisville and North Carolina starting lineups

Here are the starting lineups for Louisville and North Carolina women’s basketball.

Louisville Cardinals starting lineup

Head coach: Jeff Walz

North Carolina Tar Heels starting lineup

Head coach: Courtney Banghart

What time is North Carolina vs. Louisville?

Date: Saturday, March 7
Time: 2:30 p.m. ET
Location: Gas South Arena (Duluth, Georgia)

The North Carolina Tar Heels play the Louisville Cardinals in the second ACC semifinal game at 2:30 p.m. ET Saturday, March 7 at Gas South Arena in Duluth, Georgia.